Yankees to give Aaron Judge ‘a couple of days off’

The 2017 season has been a tale of two seasons for slugger Aaron Judge.

In the first half of the season, Judge was on an absolute tear. The 25-year-old was hitting .329, and posted a .691 slugging percentage.

Since the All-Star break, Judge has definitely seen his struggles. Over his last 41 games, he’s hitting just .179 with a .352 slugging percentage, and has only hit seven home runs since July 7. He also set a Major League record for striking out at least once in 37 consecutive games.

The Yankees are currently in the middle of a playoff race and need Judge to get back on track. Manager Joe Girardi announced that the club will take another approach with regards to their rookie outfielder:

Girardi said he’s going to give Judge a couple of days off to try and “refresh him and get him going.”

According to Jack Curry of the YES Network, the Yankees are planning to give Judge a couple of days off. Their hope is that the rest will give him time to refresh and get back on track.

As of now, it appears that Judge will not be in the lineup for Monday or Tuesday’s games against the Cleveland Indians. If all goes well, the plan is for Judge to be back in the lineup for the series finale on Wednesday afternoon.

With their playoff hopes on the line, the Bronx Bombers will need their offense to step up. Judge is a major part of their lineup, and will need to figure out his struggles to help the Yankees capture another American League East Division crown.